The Space-Time of Every Moment

Posted about 4 years ago|Comments Off on The Space-Time of Every Moment

By KM Huber

I came late to the word space-time but not to the concept, not really. I do not remember ever distinguishing the dimensions of space—its length, depth, width, breadth, or height—from time. For me, they are not separate. I am in stellar company as Edgar Allan Poe, H.G. Wells, and even Marcel Proust wrote of space and time as one. Of course, there is Einstein’s relativity theory as well.

For me, space-time has always been more about mindfulness, paying attention to the details of life as they unfold. The space of a moment is a combination of any three of the spatial dimensions–width, depth, breadth, length, or height. The time of a moment is its unfolding as a scene in life. It is as if each moment has four dimensions, a trio of space in time, or 3+1.

Space-time gives me a better sense of the present as a bridge between the past and the future. The present provides open-ended access to both yet serves as a reminder that the only time we actually live is now.

Having access to the past and to the future is not the same as being in either one for we never are. We are always in the present. Yet, it is in paying attention to the details of our lives as they unfold that provides the access to both the past and to the future.

If being completely immersed in the moment reminds us of a similar scenario in the past, that moment might flash through the mind as a thought. It usually does for me. In that flash of familiarity, I have accessed the immutable past but I remain in the present scene as it unfolds in its unique way. The scenes are similar but not the same.

Awareness also seems to color the future. Sometimes, I wonder whether or not awareness is the source of infinite possibilities. When we are truly present maybe we are stockpiling for our future; perhaps by minding the details of the present, we provide options for the future.

It is tempting to try to re-frame the past as well as create the future, as if either were possible. Neither is. I know. I have tried. The present is all there ever is and to ignore it is like separating space from time, which is something I cannot do.

After all, everywhere I go, there I am. I might as well be who I am in the moment that I am.

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KM Huber is a writer who learned Zen from a beagle. She believes the moment is all we ever have, and it is enough. In her early life as a hippie, she practiced poetry, and although her middle years were a bit of a muddle, she remains an overtly optimistic sexagenerian, writing prose. She blogs at kmhubersblog.com, may be followed on Twitter @KM_Huber or contacted by email at writetotheranch[at]gmail[dot]com.